To emphasize the silent, tragic epidemic that is sweeping across the U.S. military, consider this one statistic,

“More U.S. military personnel have died by suicide since the war in Afghanistan began than have died fighting there.”

Let me rephrase that, just to make sure you understood the above statistic: Since the start of the Afghanistan war in 2001, there have been more soldier suicides than soldier combat deaths.

It’s not as though the Pentagon has been doing nothing on this issue. They have been working to address the epidemic of soldier suicides through research, by setting up hotlines, expanding outreach programs, and increasing access to mental health services. Yet, we are still seeing a suicide per day.